


please take me by the hand (it's so cold out tonight)

by lovelyflowersinherhair



Series: so here's your valentine [2]
Category: Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-28
Updated: 2019-10-28
Packaged: 2021-01-05 13:14:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,073
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21209132
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lovelyflowersinherhair/pseuds/lovelyflowersinherhair
Summary: “Wait.” FP reached out and took her hand in his. “Alice, what happened? Did the twins call you mom?”





	please take me by the hand (it's so cold out tonight)

“Don’t be ridiculous,” Alice said softly. “You can’t go in costume as a Sheriff, FP. You  _ are _ our Sheriff.” 

“But the twins don’t know that,” FP protested. “They didn’t even know that it was wrong to live in a house with their dead father!”

“That’s your defense?” Alice sounded exhausted, and he gulped as she leveled a glare at him. “Look, FP, if I had it my way Polly would have given the children up for adoption and we wouldn’t be in this mess. This is temporary. It’s only until she gets better.”

“I don’t understand why she couldn’t take them with her,” he admitted. “I mean, what’s the big deal? Isn’t she on a retreat?”

“She’s been sectioned,” she said, and he heard her let out a sigh. “Honestly, I’m not entirely certain she’s  _ ever _ going to be well enough to take care of them independently.” Another sigh. “But, that doesn’t matter. We’re not going to think about that now. We’re going to focus on getting to go trick-or-treating with my grandchildren.” 

Alice smiled widely. It was somewhat unnerving. “Uh, okay, Al,” he said. “Trick-or-treating. Right.” 

“The internet tells me that that is something that grandparents enjoy doing,” she continued, her tone breezy. “So. I am going to enjoy doing it. Like a  _ normal _ grandma. And I would like you to come with me. With us.”

“Does the internet?” 

She nodded. “Yes. I looked it up when Elizabeth told me that she thought that I should be interacting with the twins more. The internet is a  _ wealth _ of resources, FP, and I--”

“I think, and I may be wrong,” he said. “It’s possible that Betty meant...interacting with them in general, and not taking them out trick-or-treating.” 

“I know what she meant,” Alice said. “I’m sorry that I happen to be a perpetual disappointment for you both.” 

“Al--”

The dish that Alice had been scrubbing fell into the basin with a clatter, and FP cringed at the sound, hoping it hadn’t broken. “What, FP?”

“You’re not a disappointment to me,” he said. “I just meant that...I don’t know what I meant, okay?”

“I can’t be one of those  _ pinterest  _ mothers for them. I tried that. Look how my girls turned out. One of them is in a locked psychiatric ward and the other has decided to become a damn member of the Junior FBI. Elizabeth didn’t even ask me for my permission. She’s going to get herself killed!”

“I don’t think that Charlie will let her get hurt, Al.”

“He doesn’t even call me Mom,” she whispered. “I don’t even think that he likes me.”

“That’s not true.” 

“You don’t have to pretend, FP. I know that I don’t deserve Charlie wanting me as his mother. I know that he was probably only willing to let me play informant because he needed someone on the cusp of trustworthy.” She shook her head. “I was the one who left him there at the Sisters. It was my fault that he didn’t get adopted. I should have been stronger. I should have stood up against Hal and his parents. Maybe if I had things would have been different. Maybe my son would call me Mom and my damn grandchildren wouldn’t. Like normal families.”

“Wait.” FP reached out and took her hand in his. “Alice, what happened? Did the twins call you mom?”

“They must have heard Elizabeth call me that,” she hissed. “I should have made her call me Alice. She’d probably have gotten a thrill. Now they think I’m their damn mother.” 

“Al…”

“I don’t want to be their mother,” she continued. “Every choice I ever  _ tried _ to have has been taken away or decided for me. I couldn’t decide that I wanted to keep our son because Hal didn’t want me to, and now all I am to him is a damn FBI informant. How long until he gets bored of having Elizabeth around and ditches her, too? Couldn’t decide whether I wanted to get married or not. Hell, couldn’t even decide whether or not I wanted to end my marriage. I guess I had the choice on having the girls, but did I really? It was what was expected of me. Have the career as long as I gave him the kids. And you. I was so stupid. I thought you loved me. That maybe we had something. And you left me for Gladys. And then you were there when I came home. But why would you stay? You didn’t sign up for  _ parenting _ Polly’s mistakes.” 

“Well, yeah, but you didn’t either.” 

“I couldn’t exactly let them be wards of the state,” she sniffled. “And they certainly couldn’t stay there. That entire property needs to be fumigated.”

“Cheryl needs to be committed.” 

“Well. That’s up to the Feds to decide.” She wrinkled her nose. “Jason’s body was exhumed due to the Farm, and that means that it falls under their jurisdiction. Either way I couldn’t exactly leave either my grandchildren or the Topaz girl in a house with a decomposing corpse and enough rats to start another version of the Black Death.” 

“Look, Al. I’m not going to leave.”

“What if they call you Dad?” 

He shrugged. “It’s fine by me, Al. They’re not doing it to be cruel, you know that, right? They’re babies. You’re probably the most consistent thing that they  _ have _ to a mother.” He shook his head. “And if they want to call me Dad, that’s on them. At least I’m a step up from a literal corpse.”

Alice sniffled. “She’s not going to get better, is she?” 

“I don’t know,” he said. “I just don’t think it’s going to be a quick fix. Or if she’ll be competent enough to take care of the twins when she’s out of the program. I think that you need to be realistic here. There’s something wrong with the girl, and being in that cult, for that amount of time, did nothing to help things.”

“I know. You’re right. I have been avoiding them. I thought that taking them trick-or-treating would distract everyone from that.”

“It’s okay,” he whispered, and he brought his arms around her. “No one expects you to be okay with everything, Al. It’s okay not to be okay. And I would love to go with you and the kids. Trick-or-treating.”   
  


“You would?” 

He nodded. “Yeah. Why not. I’ll even let you make me a costume.” 


End file.
